Mahabharata 7.17.31 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 17, Shloka 31
Saṃśaptakas in Candrārdha-vyūha; Arjuna’s Devadatta and the Traigarta Rout
Chapter 17
अगारदाहिनां चैव ये च गां निघ्नतामपि । अपकारिणां च ये लोका ये च ब्रह्मद्धिषामपि
agāradāhināṁ caiva ye ca gāṁ nighnatām api | apakāriṇāṁ ca ye lokā ye ca brahmadviṣām api ||
সঞ্জয় বললেন—“যদি আমরা যুদ্ধে অর্জুনকে বধ না করে ফিরে আসি, অথবা তার বাণে আহত হয়ে ভয়ে রণ থেকে মুখ ফিরিয়ে নিই, তবে আমরা সেই পাপলোকই লাভ করব—যে লোক অগ্নিসংযোগকারীদের, গোহত্যাকারীদের, অনিষ্টকারীদের এবং ব্রাহ্মণবিদ্বেষীদের প্রাপ্য।”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Retreating from a righteous battle out of fear—especially without accomplishing the stated martial objective—is portrayed as a grave moral failure, likened to notorious sins (arson, cow-slaughter, harming others, hostility to Brahmins) that lead to degraded post-mortem realms.
Sañjaya reports a severe warning voiced within the Kaurava camp: if they fail to kill Arjuna and instead withdraw, broken by his arrows and fear, they believe they will incur the same dreadful fate as major sinners.
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